The Lemon Twigs Are in a Class of Their Own With Sophomore Album ‘Do Hollywood’

One of the most popular albums released this year was Lemonade by R&B superstar Beyoncé. However, there was another lemon-related music work that deserves some attention. The Lemon Twigs, a Long Island-based duo, founded by two brothers, Michael and Brian D’Addario, who have created an album that honors a rich history of music that came before it.

The band’s debut “Do Hollywood,” was released this past October to positive reviews. Many reviewers compared their sound to older artists, such as Queen, Big Star and Modern English.

If the Lemon Twigs were looking to arouse nostalgia in listeners, they made a good choice in their producer. Jonathan Rado of Foxygen, another band often cited for their throwback sound, manned the boards for “Do Hollywood.”

The band is definitely getting somewhere. Influential music publication NME ranked “Do Hollywood” at number 44 on their list of the top 50 albums of 2016. They expressed admiration for the studied throwback sound that filled the album, offering comparisons to the Beatles and former Pink Floyd frontman Syd Barrett.

Still, the album been fairly overlooked by most music publications. For instance, it wasn’t even reviewed by Pitchfork. It could be very possible that the album was released too late in the year to get attention. Oftentimes, it seems like people decide what their favorite albums of the year are in September. Therefore, an album released in October, even a very good one like “Do Hollywood,” can end up being lost in the shuffle.

There is also the possibility that the Lemon Twigs’ throwback sound doesn’t necessarily gel well with music journalism of today. While many popular artists such as Tame Impala utilize sounds that were first popularized decades ago, Lemon Twigs might lack a certain something that would give them untold popularity. They certainly aren’t unpopular; their most popular songs have hundreds of thousands of plays on Spotify. Their videos on YouTube also have a large number of views, and they have appeared on television shows such as “Conan” and “The Tonight Show With Jimmy Fallon.”

Still, there’s no need to worry too much about the Lemon Twigs. They are just getting started in the music industry and based on the positive reception released to their first album, they are on the right track. If they keep using their influences in the right way and develop their own unique sound, they could become a force to be reckoned with in the industry. On their album, they have a song titled “How Lucky Am I?” So far, they seem pretty lucky.